Evidence was sought from the medical records of 30,000 primary care records

Alimentary Pharmacology & Therapeutics

The team found atopic conditions in excess among all functional gastrointestinal disorder groups considered when compared with controls.

In the groups with IBS alone, functional dyspepsia alone, and those with multiple functional gastrointestinal disorders there was elevated prevalence of asthma compared with controls without a functional gastrointestinal disorder.

The researchers noted across disorders the excess was generally highest among patients diagnosed with multiple functional gastrointestinal disorders.

This was only partly explained by a common association between both functional gastrointestinal disorders and atopic conditions with mood disorders, although not for every atopic/functional gastrointestinal disorder combination.

Dr Jones' team commented, "Irritable bowel syndrome, functional dyspepsia and constipation share an association with atopy that is only partly explained via a common connection with mood disorders."

"These data have important implications for understanding both the pathophysiology of functional gastrointestinal disorders and development of new treatments."